I have broken Zaltos but at a far lower rate than even the titanium crystal Schott Zweisels.
Have I mentioned recently how much I like the glasses?
Broke two opening the dishwasher and sliding the rack out. Got caught somehow and the bowls snapped. Another one snapped at the bowl hand drying. Had one drop about three feet onto a stone terrace and it just bounced but did not break.
i’m still scared to put them in the dishwasher. how exactly do you do it without them knocking around?
i had 6 drying upside down on a drying rack below my cabinet. grabbed a ceramic bowl from the top shelf, slipped out of my hand and fell on top of all of them. sounded like july 4th. every stem went flying. not a single one broke. i couldn’t believe it.
We also use Zalto almost exclusively as everyday glasses. We’ve only broken one: my mother-in-law knocked it off the counter onto the floor. Unfortunately it did not bounce. We wash 2-4 in the dishwasher almost everyday. We do make sure they aren’t touching anything else, including each other.
Just recently got the Universal, Burgundy and Bordeaux Zaltos and love them. Also the Gabriel Glas. Such a pleasure to drink from all of them. They seem fragile but I carefully handwash them and so far, no problems. I’ve had thicker Riedels that broke, some quite easily.
After using these, I’m spoiled. Any other glasses just feel clumsy and inelegant.
Nearly all of the broken Zaltos are as a result of handling them…if you insist on hand washing them just do not hold them by the stem or the base or torque them at all…
They’re pretty much the only glasses I use now…They’re not necessarily the best for every wine but they’re always going to perform well and they just feel nice to use…regardless of anything else, they nice to use…and they make all my other glasses feel like giant mugs…
I too think the Zaltos are MUCH tougher than they look which, given they look like they could break simply via eye contact, is not a huge feat. But, seriously, I’ve had mine over a year and haven’t broken any. The bowls are made of whatever break-hesitant type glass several others are and has a unique tone to it if you clink. I’ve had other glasses made out of similar stuff that have lasted years and years and survived more bumps than they should have. (Out and out drops to a hard surface floor? No. They’re not magic.)
Merrill, I also agree that the what-the-heck-is-this-super-special-occasion-we’re-saving-things-for thing is bogus, in the extreme. And yet … I do it. I don’t own “good” China for that very reason (why?) and before my Zaltos I didn’t own “good” or “special occasion” glasses, either. Yet, even knowing they’re sturdier than they appear I still tend not to reach for them on a daily basis. (Well, that and the fact that the base is too large to fit in the drink holders in our theatre room and the endless parade of Disney movies we watch with kids are vastly improved when watching with wine: #firstworldproblems.) The same way I have certain bottles that have been at the top of my CellarTracker “Ready to Drink” report for over a year now but I haven’t found an occasion “special” enough to pop them. Cheapness-1, Logic-0.
We wash ALL our glasses in the dishwasher and I agree with all who say you’re much more likely to break them hand-washing than dishwashing. Most modern dishwashers have wine glass racks either on the top or the bottom shelf. Our Miele has both and I prefer the bottom racks, because you don’t have to tip tall glasses to use them (which can leave residue in the titled bowl post-wash). They’re nifty little drop down shelves with hook-like notches that hold the stem with the glass upside down. There is even a “vase” holder that’s perfect for washing a decanter. Brilliant.
As a side note, we traded our Bosches for top-of-the-line Mieles and I LOVE them, even though they were absurdly pricey, but Joe if your Bosch is leaving your glasses wine-stained, something’s wrong. Try running a load, on the glassware cycle if you have it, with Glisten in the bottom of your dishwasher. That’s very good at removing such stains. Also, make sure your filter is totally clear and clean. Run bleach though it, too. Then make sure you’re doing regular cleaning cycles of your dishwasher on the hottest cycle. I like using the liquid dishwasher cleaners, with Jet Dry being the most common, where you put the container in an empty dishwasher on the rack and it runs a cycle that leaves everything, including supposedly the inside parts, sparkling. Before we replaced the Bosches we did all that stuff and it helped tremendously. It’s usually a water issue, which worsens as the machine ages and stuff gets gunked up. By the by, if it’s really bad try taking apart the spinning water dispensers (they just unscrew; it’s not hard) and making sure none of the holes are clogged. Soak 'em in bleach water overnight and you’ll likely see improved performance overall.
My son knocked a universal off the counter to the wood floor, it lived. We were both shocked.
I have the universal, the burgandy, but still use the xl for cab/syrah…may add the zalto at some point
yup. I did the same thing. I made a mistake of holding it by the bottom as I washed the bowl.
We used the Universal for batting practice and didn’t break one until someone hit a sharp grounder to third base – love them!
I love them, but have broken many over the last 5 years since I got my first. More than anything, the bowl has separated from the stem, though I’ve had other issues. The dishwasher broke one, it was just cracked when I opened the dishwasher.
For these reasons, I use the Cork and Bottle (“Hip”) “alternative” to the Zalto red Burgundy. When one breaks, it’s $6 down the drain…a lot easier to stomach. And, I’ve never detected a meaningful difference in the wine experience between them and the real ones. And, people are impressed that we’re willing to expose a real Zalto to them…and I don’t say anything. Frankly, I think getting real one is too risky at this point. Why!!
It seems to be generally agreed upon that the stems (at least for the Burgundy) vary in thickness. I do not have a dishwasher, assuming that would make things easier. But go right ahead and make fun of me for being fearful; no, of course they are not fragile. I’ve experienced absolutely no issues with Schott Zweisel and they are not comparable in terms of cost.
Hm, maybe I should’ve gotten Zalto instead of the pair of Gabriel Glas. Like them, but one was broken inside of two weeks, thanks to some combination of the dishwasher and my wife or the au pair. Now they’re all afraid to touch the remaining one - so it’ll probably last a decade. I agree with DW for almost any stemware: you just need to be sure the glass and surrounding dishes are all secure enough that they’re not going to bang into each other, and that the DW prongs aren’t putting tension on the bowl.
Posting as a Public Service – but I don’t have any Zaltos (yet) so I can’t confirm:
Aldo Sohm recently posted three short videos on how to clean a Zalto. The first two videos are things you shouldn’t do – and the third is the correct method:
Enjoy!
Alicia,
Thank you for that.
I usually put mine in the washer but what Alicia posted is spot on.
I know Stuart, and others, are big fans, and they certainly are priced right, but I found these standard glass HIPs both ridiculously large and, maybe because of that, super fragile. The ones we didn’t quickly break I recently gave to Goodwill.
My current favorites are the Spiegelau Hybrid Bordeaux, which are also break resistant and a dead ringer for the Zalto Bordeaux.
Here’s a side by side shot I snapped after taking both out of the dishwasher today. Can you tell which one is the Zalto at first glance?
OK, it’s the one on the right, as the super thin stem is the giveaway. Look, I’m not saying the Zalto isn’t better. In fact, I’d say objectively it is, but only slightly. And I can get six of the Spiegelau’s for the cost of one Zalto (source: Spiegelau 4328035 Hybrid 23 oz. Bordeaux Wine Glass - 12/Case)
I wonder if your local Goodwill sells them as authentic Zalto or just the $6.00 knockoffs with the Petrus and other fine wines people give to the Goodwill in your area, so they buy the real deal for 10x the price. 
And though it’s none of my business, are you taking a deduction for the real Zaltos or the HIP? I’m always looking for new ventures.
I bought a pair of Zalto Bordeaux back in February. One of the them had a significantly thinner stem than the other. Sure enough, last week while I was rinsing it under some warm water, I looked at it wrong and it snapped in two, taking a little piece of my finger along with it. Having bought them at wholesale took some of the pain away, but didn’t help a bit with the bloodletting.
I’m happy with the other one as well as a pair of mouth-blown Gabriel Glas purchased on Berserker Day.
Anyone know a distributor where a Berserker can get a good deal on 6 or 12 of these? I know Kevin no longer reps them and he was my go-to source before.